Marked annually on 8th March, International Women’s Day (IWD) is a time to reflect on progress made, to call for change and to celebrate acts of courage and determination by ordinary women who have played an extraordinary role in the history of their countries and communities.
IWD 2018 is being celebrated under the theme “Time is Now: Rural and urban activists transforming women’s lives.”
With the majority of its workforce being female, Brussels Airlines advocates equal opportunities for men and women in their work life.
Today, Brussels Airlines’ flight SN2579 to Berlin will be led by Captain Sofie and First Officer Marie-Aude. Purser Liesbeth will take care of the service in the cabin together with cabin crew members Kaya and Gillie.
All other Lufthansa Group airlines (Lufthansa, SWISS, Austrian and Eurowings) also operate all-women flights to Berlin from their respective home airport. With this symbolic flight, the airline wants to help strive for a more gender inclusive world.
With female co-workers on all levels and in every department, including HR, Marketing, Ground Operations, Aircraft Maintenance, Cabin Crew and support services, the majority of Brussels Airlines’ workforce is female (51.6%). At 10%, the airline’s percentage of female pilots is one of the highest in the aviation industry, where the global average is slightly over 3%.
Besides the flight to Berlin, Brussels Airlines also operates a 100% female crew flight to Abidjan (Ivory Coast) and to Accra (Ghana), where Brussels Airlines’ Country Manager and Station Manager are both women. In the cockpit will be Captain Daniela and First Officer Marie. The service in the cabin will be overlooked by Veronique, Patty, Xandra, Isabelle, Maité, Ingrid, Caroline and Peggy. This way the airline wants to support gender equality in Africa, the continent Brussels Airlines considers its second home and where International Women’s Day is widely celebrated.
“At Brussels Airlines we find it important to contribute to IWD by organising these symbolic actions because we firmly believe in gender equality. We understand that having a family and a career can be a balancing act and we strive to support all our colleagues, men and women, to ensure that each and every person is able to reach their full career potential, while maintaining a good work-life balance,” says Diane Cauwenberghs, HR Talent Manager at Brussels Airlines.
From 1st April, the Belgian giant carrier will also have a female CEO. Christina Foerster will be the first ever woman to be heading a Lufthansa Group airline.
Brussels Airlines, a member of Lufthansa Group and Star Alliance, is the Belgian airline that offers the widest choice of flights to and from the capital of Europe, Brussels Airport. The company has more than 3,600 employees and 48 aircraft operating some 250 flights daily, connecting the capital of Europe to 90 premium European destinations, 24 African destinations, three North American destinations and Tel Aviv and Mumbai.
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